That's because we're in Pride Month June. This article is about the diversity of people. People who gather under the rainbow flag because they can identify with the values it stands for and around people who do the same out of solidarity.
There are many terms and abbreviations that are related to this. Those that are used naturally by some, but noticed by others but not understood. We would like to explain a few of these terms and abbreviations and make their backgrounds more understandable.
LGBTQI – What does that mean?
LGBTQI is the acronym for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex. The acronym is, so to speak, a kind of overview of the diversity of human sexuality and identity. Most people are probably familiar with the terms “lesbian” and “gay”. But what do the other names mean?
- Lesbian : A woman is emotionally and/or sexually attracted to women.
- Gay : A man is emotionally and/or sexually attracted to men.
- Bisexual : A person, whether man or woman, feels emotionally and/or sexually attracted to both women and men (assuming a gender binary).
- Transgender transgender refers to people who cannot (fully) identify with the gender assigned to them at birth or do not feel described.
- Queer : This term can be interpreted in different ways. It is sometimes used as a kind of collective term for lesbians, gays, transgender and intersex people. People who describe themselves as “queer” often mean that they see their identity beyond categories such as “man”, “woman”, “gay”/lesbian”/“straight”. Queer can also mean an attitude that questions heteronormativity and binary genders.
- Intersexuality : (Self-) designation for a person whose genetic, anatomical and/or hormonal sexual characteristics do not correspond to the gender norms of men and women from birth.
What is Pride Month?
Pride Month June is all about diversity and equality. It has its origins in an incident that occurred on June 28, 1969 in a bar called the Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street in Manhattan, New York. That day there was a police operation in the location, which was known to be frequented primarily by guests from the gay scene. At that time, operations and raids were almost commonplace in locations of this type.
In this particular operation at the Stonewall Inn, however, the police acted with disproportionate severity, dragging the men into the street and beating them up. Thousands of people gathered on the streets of New York to demonstrate over the next three days. The first “Gay Parades” and “Pride Parades” finally took place on the anniversary of this event. Many people are probably familiar with “Christopher Street” Day. Since then, this has been celebrated annually to commemorate this memorable event and to set an example for diversity and equality.
What's the rainbow flag all about?
The colorful rainbow flag has been associated with the LGBTQI community since 1978. Previously it was in the reverse color order (from purple at the top to red at the bottom) and added the word “PACE,” a symbol of the international peace movement. Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected representative in the USA, wanted to create a symbol for the upcoming “Pride Parade” and commissioned the artist and human rights activist Gilbert Baker to do this. The aim of the flag design was to remind us of the stripes of the US flag, but still wanted to symbolically incorporate diversity. According to Cleve Jones, a friend of Baker's, he saw the flag as "his gift to the world" and therefore renounced any trademark rights. This was the birth of the rainbow flag, which still flies today.
People who use this flag self-confidently acknowledge their (non-hetero) sexuality or demonstrate their solidarity with or sense of belonging to the LGBTQI community and people who share similar values. This also includes people who stand up for global equality and the acceptance of people who cannot identify with traditional role models
Color symbolism of the flag
In most cases today, the rainbow flag consists of six colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple. These colors are said to symbolize life, health, sun, nature, harmony and spirit. The flag is partially complemented by the colors pink/fuchsia (symbolic of sexuality) and turquoise (symbolic of art). In some cases there is also a black stripe to draw attention to the AIDS problem.
Sources: Miss.at , AndersARTiG , Berliner Morgenpost , lsvd.de
Also interesting:
After UEFA's ban on rainbow colors: DFB announces support for the distribution of rainbow flags!
DFB: Support in the distribution of rainbow flags
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1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )

